


Come Morning Light

by echotango



Series: Come Morning Light [1]
Category: Wallander (UK TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Feelings, Mention of major character death, Mentions of Rape, mentions of self harm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-10
Updated: 2013-03-31
Packaged: 2017-11-24 08:31:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/632458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/echotango/pseuds/echotango
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Anne-Britt's sudden and tragic death, the team splits apart and some new officers are put together to form a team under Kurt Wallander's command. The team must face the most dangerous criminals Ystad has to offer as well as their inner demons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Character Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> I've written a chapter so far, but here is the character introduction. AND YES, I KILL ANNE-BRITT. Also, I haven't read all of the books, but I'm working on it. Sorry for any mistakes. - Effie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The full character list, and a few notes.

  * Alex Kingston - Sigourney Forslund
  * Benedict Cumberbatch - Carl Edenholm
  * Burn Gorman - Linus Dahlamn
  * Dean O’ Gorman - Gregory Efrenson
  * Ellie Goulding - Anna Bystrom
  * Emily Blunt - Rose Manchester
  * Jeany Spark - Linda Wallander
  * Karen Gillan - Louise Riley
  * Katy Perry - Evelyn Manchester
  * Kenneth Brannagh - Kurt Wallander
  * Lady F (from Deviantart) - Dee West
  * Lara Pulver -Eleanor Cristoph
  * Lea Seydoux - Ebba Segerberg
  * Loo Brealey - Brigid Wright
  * Mark Gatiss - Tim Delling
  * Matt Bomer - Steven Graham
  * Michael Fassbender - Jacob Pruit
  * Michael Sheen - Hugo Thorson
  * Perrie Edwards - Anais Dravinsky
  * Richard Armitage - Maxwell Cristoph
  * Richard McCabe - Gustav Nyberg
  * Rooney Mara - Lisbeth Salander
  * Sasha Alexander - Debra Witherspoon
  * Tom Hiddleston - Magnus Martinsson



Please note that I'm currently reading the Wallander book series right now and that this fanfiction is based on the BBC Wallander rather than the books, but might include some stuff from the books. Lisbeth Salander from the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series is featured in a chapter or two, and another note, I've never read the books or seen the movies.

The basic plot is that after Anne-Britt's sudden passing, the team breaks apart and new officers are added to the team. Lisa Holgersson has moved to a different police station to become their police chief and Timothy Delling is brought in to replace her. In addition to Kurt and Magnus, Eleanor Cristoph, Louise Riley, and Carl Edenholm form the most notorious team of detectives in Ystad. Two forensic scientists, Anna Bystrom and the reputable Brigid Wright, assist Nyberg with all of the forensics in these cases (and occasionally other teams' cases). This story follows all of them as they battle their own demons, solve cases, and try to not fall in love with each other (oops).


	2. Never Safe and Sound

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurt, Magnus, Nyberg, and the new team members keep their thoughts about Anne-Britt's death to themselves and the intelligent, yet very introverted, computer hacker, Lisbeth, makes a startling discovery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit short, but I like it. Lots of OCs, but Nyberg, Magnus, and Kurt are still there. I've also included Lisbeth Salander from the "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" series, but I haven't read that series. Hopefully you all like it, please comment, it means a lot to me. :) - Effie

Never Safe and Sound, Ch. 1

_"You're never safe and sound until all your doors are closed,_

_When you're awake on your own,_

_Shadows turn into ghosts_

_Soon it will all fall apart_

_And their roads will have no way"_

\- Ghosts, Gabrielle Aplin

 

                Officers milled about, going around as if no one was remembering what had happened a year ago. Twelve months ago, everything was normal, up until Anne-Britt Hoglund died, no one really knew how she died since no one talked about it. A month after her death, Kurt Wallander's team broke apart and the newbies were brought in. Magnus Martinsson and the plump Gustav Nyberg stayed by his side while Louise Riley, Eleanor Christoph, and Carl Edenholm were chosen from a few applicants in the main police force. Anna Bystrom and the notorious Brigid Wright had been taken from the main forensic laboratory in Linköping and relocated to Ystad.

                Now, the team was sitting around the large, wooden table that had papers scattered all over it. Coffee cups sat in front of their respective owners, and the two original detectives looked utterly depressed. The other five sat quietly, shuffling papers around to fill the awkward silence. No one wanted to express their condolences and bring the devastating event up in a conversation, but they knew it would come to light eventually. Suddenly, Anna’s phone vibrated with a phone call, which she answered immediately.

                “I’ll be right back.” She mouthed to her friends at the table, a few nodded and she walked out of the room, answering the phone as she closed the door behind her. “Hello?”

                “Hey, it’s Linda.”

                “Oh, hey, how are you?”

                “Fine, fine. How’s my dad? I’ve been worried about him, he’s been thinkin’ about Anne-Britt lately. It’s not healthy.”

                “I think he’s okay.” Anna looked through the glass wall at Kurt, who sat silently with a grim face as he went through the papers from the case they were working on. “No one’s mentioned Anne yet, I don’t think we will. I mean, none of us knew her well, except for Magnus and your dad. I knew her, but she was just a friend before I joined Ystad.”

                “Okay, well, please keep an eye on him, I want to know how he’s handling it.”

                “Sure, sure, I’m sure Nyberg and him will go out for a drink later or something of that sort.”

                “Just as long as he has someone with him. I don’t want him doing something stupid.”

                “Look, I have to go, okay? I’ll call you if anything happens.”

                “Alright, thanks, you’re the best Anna.”

                “Don’t mention it. Bye.” She hung up without a second thought and went back into the room to sit at her seat.

                “Who was that?” Louise nosed, watching her intently.

                “Oh uhm, no one.”

                “By the way you were talking, it was definitely someone.” A small smile spread across Magnus’s lips, and Anna felt a blush creep across her face.

                “It was Linda, just calling to say ‘hi’.” Kurt’s head popped up, eyeing her suspiciously.

                “Why did Linda call _you_?”

                “We’re friends.”

                “She failed to mention that.” He grumbled and focused back on his work, the other detectives followed and continued shuffling their papers around. No one was in the mood to make a comment and upset him, so they stayed quiet for an hour or so before it was time for lunch. A few stomachs grumbled and they all started to get restless. Louise and Carl stood up to stretch, Anna let out a yawn, and Eleanor, voicing her plans to the team, had decided to go out to lunch.

                “Would anyone like to come with me? Magnus?”

                “No, thanks I brought my lunch.”

                “I’ll come along, if you don’t mind.” Carl smiled and she nodded, he yanked his coat off the back of his chair and stuffed his arms into the sleeves. Nyberg, Kurt, and Louise all politely declined.

                “I’ll stay here, Anna and I will be eating in the lab. We have work to finish.” Brigid gathered up her own papers and bag, then exited the conference room to go down to the laboratory.

                “Mph, I guess I’m eating in the lab. Maybe next time.” Anna shrugged and grabbed her own papers as well as her tote bag that was stuffed with more scraps of paper than she could count, then stalked out of the room, a bit furious at Brigid for dragging her along. She had to go eat lunch in the basement, the spacious laboratory was high-tech and modern, quite nice to look at really…if you were into looking at machines all day, but she wanted to look out the windows and watch the odd squirrels find food. Honestly, she didn’t want to sit with Brigid discussing dead bodies and blood samples, she wanted an intriguing conversation with Louise or Magnus.

                As she shoved her finger at the elevator button, she felt someone walk up towards her. She spun around and immediately blushed. It was Magnus. If it was Carl, she would’ve blushed too, it was awful for her to be around cute guys like them, they made her cheeks grow red and her chest grow warm with happiness, giggles, and butterflies.

                “Hey, mind if I eat with you?” Her auburn eyes widened, and her mouth opened but nothing happened.

                “Oh uhm yeah yeah sure. That would be nice.” _Oh my shit, why did I say that? Okay, just don’t say any other idiotic stuff and you’ll be fine._

“So what did you do this weekend?” _I went to the doctor’s office, slept, and ate chocolate._

_“_ I went to the doctor’s office and tried out a new cake recipe.” She looked down, and he smirked at how embarrassed and shy she was around him. “What about you?”

                “Eh, I watched Doctor Who.” He shrugged. “You should invite all of us over, you seem like a very talented cook.”

                “Oh, mh, maybe. I only bake cakes though. Wouldn’t be much of a meal.” The elevator doors open and the two of them stepped in. She violently pressed the basement button and then shifted her bag’s straps onto her shoulder. There was an awkward silence before she finally spoke up again. “I’m sorry about Anne-Britt, I know you and Kurt were friends with her.”

                “Thanks.” He gently smiled at her and stuffed his hands in his pockets, letting out a sigh, “I still can’t believe she’s dead…It was just…I would’ve never thought she’d die like that. I thought she’d be shot or something, not die from being hit in the head.”

                “How are you handling?” He looked up, a bit taken back by her question.

                “Fine, I guess…W-Why are you bringing this up?”

                “Linda called me, she wanted to know how you and Kurt were doing.”

                “Really? She wanted to know about me too?” Anna nodded, even though it wasn’t true, she just didn’t want to sound stupid. “That’s nice of her.”

                “Do you like her?” She blurted out, biting her lip afterwards to keep any other outbursts in.

                “Oh, well, as a friend uhm yeah, she’s nice. Why?”

                “N-no reason, she just uhm, seemed uh concerned. That’s all.” She shrugged and clutched her folders stuffed with papers closer to her chest, trying to get her anxiety out by squeezing the life out of her papers. The elevator doors open and she bolted out towards the laboratory where Brigid already was eating lunch.

                “I’m going to get my lunch from the break room, you need anything?”  Magnus watched Anna who looked up, a bit startled.

                “No.” Brigid answered before Anna had any time to react.

                “No thanks.” He nodded and walked off towards the break room, leaving Anna alone at her desk, sorting her papers and shuffling through her bag to try and find her lunch. Suddenly, Magnus darted back in, holding up his phone.

                “We’ve got a case, no body or blood, but maybe you’d like to tag along?”

                “Oh, no thank you, I need to eat, besides, I need to get these blood samples finished up. Can’t keep Kurt and the others waiting!”

                “Alright, if we get evidence, I’ll bring down.”

                “Cool, see ya later.” Anna blushed and took out her lunch bag as he left again, but something felt off. Brigid was staring her down, her little nose upturned as usual and her lips in a thin line.

                “You like him.” She said all too plainly.

                “Maybe-“

                “It’s unprofessional.”

                “It’s not like I’m going to outright go and date him, jeez, he doesn’t even like me. I’m just the newb, he treats me like I’m an injured puppy, they all do.” She shrugged and pulled out her sandwich. “Besides, that’s what I am.” _Nothing more than an injured puppy._

                “I think you’re more of a strong beagle rather than just a puppy.”

                “Thanks…that’s…nice of you to say.”

                “You’re welcome.” _Honestly though, I don’t know how you or anyone for that matter, could see me as strong._ “Now, where did you put those blood samples?”

                “Which ones?” She scoffed, frowning at her. There were at least a dozen samples on her own desk, and possibly more on the large table were all of the samples were placed before they shoved them to the counter to be processed.

                “The ones from the Pruit case.”

                “Be a little more specific.”

                “Two or three samples from the crime scene, probably a few weeks ago.”

                “Already processed, I’m on the ones from last week, finally.” She nodded towards the other large table with stacks of files that were neatly arranged, then shrugged. “Should be there.” She took out her ham sandwich and rested her elbows on her desk, positioning her sandwich in front of her mouth before taking a large bite. Brigid rolled her eyes and went over to the table. “The most recent ones are closest to the lab table.”

                “Thanks.” Her sarcastic tone encouraged Anna to silently mock her, mouthing ‘thanks’ and making a goofy face. Her face turned serious as she turned towards her desk and she continued eating her sandwich, a smile plastered in her mind at how Brigid hadn’t seen what she was doing. Suddenly, the landline phone that sat on Brigid’s desk started ringing, forcing her to roll her eyes and pick up the phone.

                “Brigid Wright, Ystad Forensics Department. Ho- Oh, hey Lis…okay, sure…come on down...See ya soon…No, no, it’s fine, cool, bye.” She hung up and turned towards Anna, “Well, that was Lisbeth, she’s comin’ down here soon, wants to talk about some computer junk or something. I think she’s supposed to be updating the computers.” She shrugged and sat down at her desk, then stuck her hand underneath her desk, searching blindly for her lunch bag, which she found with ease. When she started eating, Anna had already finished her sandwich and was working on a bag of Doritos and some Sprite.

                “That’s unhealthy.” Brigid commented, earning a glare from her.

                “I don’t care, I eat healthy at home.” She shrugged and popped a chip in her mouth before licking her finger, making a popping noise when she pulled it out of her mouth.

                “That stuff’s gonna kill you.”

                “Okay, thanks for letting me know.” She scrunched her nose and then returned her focus on her chips. Truth was, Anna did actually eat healthier at home. Raspberries, blueberries, salads, and lots of nuts of all types.

                Ten minutes later, Lisbeth Salander entered through the main entrance, boring a striking resemblance to a dead raccoon. Her black Mohawk, numerous piercings and tattoos, as well as her spiked bracelets made Anna weary of her presence. Her friend, Dee, had a couple tattoos and an odd hair color, but at least she was much more pleasant to be around, Lisbeth seemed make the room temperature drop a few degrees and send shivers down Anna’s spine.

                “Hey.” Lisbeth nodded to Anna, not even a smile crossed her firm lips.

                “Hi.” Anna did her famous finger wave that Lisbeth despised, and Lisbeth invited herself to plop down at Brigid’s chair to work on the computers.

                “How have ya been?”

                “Fine.” _No personality whatsoever, great person to work with, I bet._ Anna made a face to herself and then turned towards the computer that sat on the left side of her L-shaped desk. The shape was convenient for her due to the fact that she liked to have two separate areas to work with, the papers area and the computer area, no mixing allowed.

                “What grisly murder are you guys working on now?” Anna picked her head up when she heard Lisbeth’s voice. _Good to know that she actually makes conversations._

“Nothing interesting, just the jealous wife cases and those simple ones.” She shrugged and then started typing up her report on one of the blood toxicology reports that she had failed to type up the other day due to her awful muscle pains. They were becoming more frequent, with varying intensity, that really made her question her good health.

                “Gotta love those.” She let out a little huff as she continued typing away, her fingers blazing away on the keyboard. Leaning in closer to the screen, her typing ceased, and was replaced with frequent mouse clicks. “I think you guys might have a problem.”

                “What?” The two scientists voiced in unison.

                “These firewalls aren’t all that advanced, it’s easy to hack into if you know the shit. Looks like someone decided to put their skills to good use. Might wanna tell your superiors that you’re fucked.”


	3. It's Only Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wallander's team gets a new and uninteresting case, Anna isn't as healthy as she appears, and Lisbeth continues to make new discoveries regarding the computer hacking scandal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long, hopefully this chapter to bet than the last. Please note, any Swedish translations here are from Google translate since I don't speak Swedish...just English and Spanish. Here are the translations, I'm really sorry if they're wrong. Once again, thank you very much for reading! If you have the time, please comment and give me some lovin'. :)  
> *“Need it? You just sleep all the time. You don’t need it." **“Shut it, mouse brain.”

It’s Only Fear, Wallander Ch. 2

 _"To live,_  
 _When you think you’re dying,_  
 _To laugh,_  
 _When you feel like crying ,_  
 _To stand,_  
 _When you think you’re gonna fall,_  
 _It’s just fear after all,"_  
\- Fear, Pauley Perrette

Eleanor, Louise, and Magnus all decided to go to the hospital where the victim was located due to the fact that there wasn't much else to do. No new cases, just the complaints that they had handed to the newer officers who had just joined Ystad. Honestly, they were all thankful that they didn't have to do much writing that day, for some reason, they were all dragging their feet and yawning between sentences. Even the strongest cup of coffee couldn't wake the normally jumpy Louise. Once they entered the hospital wing where the victim was, Magnus went his separate way to interview the paramedics who brought her in. When they had found the room, they were both tired of the light turquoise-colored walls and the awful cream-colored laminate flooring. It was a nice change when they entered to find the room had light cream colored walls and a large window that looked out on to the parking lot that was filled with trees. The view certainly wasn't the nicest, but Louise preferred looking at that rather than the turquoise walls or the broken-spirited girl who sat in the relatively small bed  
Her brown hair hung in a limp bun and she wore a light pink jacket over top of her hospital gown that matched the walls outside of the room. El sat down on the chair to the side of the hospital bed where the victim sat, she was sniffling and wiping her nose with the dirtied sleeve of her sweatshirt, making Louise, who stood in the doorway, cringe. The sleeves were pulled down over her hands, making her look like a little girl rather than a twenty year old.  
“Hello, I’m Detective Eleanor Christoph, I’ll be the one interviewing you, getting all the details and such.”  
“O-O-Okay.” She wiped her nose again with her hand.  
“Let’s start off easy, what’s your name and age? Where do you work?” She had started the tape recorder which she set down on the wooden nightstand, and listened intently.  
“Anita Heldenberg, I’m twenty and I’m training with the Bolshoi ballet company.”  
“Very impressive. Now, do you live here or in Russia?”  
“M-my parents live here, I mainly l-live in Russia.”  
“Can you remember what happened?”  
“N-N-Not much, but I was walking down the street, near the small coffee shop in the square, th-then this car just came out of nowhere and rammed into me. I fell it the ground and must’ve hit my head cuz the n-next thing I remember, I was here, being wheeled in.”  
“Do you think it was intentional?” The girl nodded. “Why?”  
“I broke up with my ex a while back, he’s been sending nasty letters and phone calls to me. He was v-violent when we were together and he hated me for breaking up with him. I just couldn’t stand his outbursts anymore. I left him and he got pissed.”  
“Did you see what kind of car it was?”  
“A Volvo, maybe red, I dunno. It was a big blur.”  
“And your boyfriend, uhm, his name?”  
“Bjorn Willbren.”  
“Alright, is there a phone number you could give us where we can contact you at?”  
“Yeah, my mum’s place. My phone got smashed when I fell. She can give you the number, I can’t remember it now. Sorry if I wasn’t much help. I’m feeling like shit.”  
“Oh no, you did great, thank you for helping. I’ll get back to you when we find something out.” She smiled at Anita and stopped the tape recorder, then placed it in her pocket. When she turned towards the door, Louise stood casting a concerned eye over the pair.  
“My life is ruined now.” El turned around, a bit stunned by her words. A light frown creased her face, she didn't know why she would say that.  
“Why- Oh.” She bit her lip and nodded.  
“Yeh, I can’t dance. My career is in shambles, they won’t let me back in because I can’t dance. I’m not perfect anymore.”  
“I’m sure they’ll let you in-“  
“What do you know? You’re just a fuckin cop.”  
“I used to want to be a dancer, until I broke my leg." She left out the part about the rape and gave her a gentle smile.  
“I guess you're a lot like me, good to know I'm not alone."  
"People always think they're alone in their struggles, but they never really are."  
"I'll keep that in mind."  
Back in the main hallway of the hospital, Magnus had tucked his notepad into his pocket and sighed, hoping that he wouldn’t have to spend any longer in the hospital. He despised the smell of rubbing alcohol and had a fear of needles, every time he had to get a shot or get his blood drawn, he’d have to take a few anti-anxiety pills beforehand and then squeeze his eyes shut like a little kid. To him, it was incredibly embarrassing and pathetic, no police officer wielding a gun should be afraid of a little needle, but he was, and it sucked.  
He took shallow breaths, trying not to inhale the awful stench of the sanitizer, and headed towards the victim’s room, biting his lip all the way. The only time he took a breath was when he felt someone approaching him from behind, and he spun around to face a thin, lanky woman with high cheek bones and great sense of style.  
“Hullo, are you one of Anita’s friends?” A light Finnish accent rolled of her tongue and a small smile formed on her lips.  
“Oh, uhm no, I’m Detective Martinsson,” He nudged his jacket away to reveal his badge and gun, then let it fall back into place, ”My partners and I are investigating Anita’s accident.”  
“It wasn’t an accident, surely you know that being a detective and all. He tried to run her over.”  
“Really, and how do you know that Miss. Uhrm-“  
“Maria Rakastaja, I’m Anita’s best friend, she tells me everything.”  
“Are you a dancer too?”  
“Of course, not many dancers have time to befriend anyone outside the company. Besides, we work too much to spend time with outsiders.” She shrugged. “Perks of the job.” Her sarcastic laugh tinkled like bells, even though her voice wasn’t all that high-pitched. The sound made Louise go into investigation mode and she stuck her head out of the doorway to find out what the noise was. Frowning, she stepped out and headed over to where the pair stood.  
“’Ello Magnus, who’s yer friend?”  
“Maria, Anita’s friend.” She held her hand out for Louise to shake, which she awkwardly shook.  
“Maybe I’ll see you later, Magnus, I need to see how Anita’s doing.” With that, she brushed past Magnus and he felt her slip something into his pocket. He took out the slip of paper and she turned around to wink at him before heading into the room.  
“Well aren’t you the lucky man?”  
“And why’s he so lucky?” El finally exited the hospital room and shoved her hands in her pockets, trying to keep them warm.  
“He just got a girl’s number.”  
“That girl, Maria-“  
“Yeah-“  
“You’re going to have to call her-“  
“You two would look cute together-“  
“Jeez, alright, later, when you too aren’t nosing into my social life-“  
“Fine,” Louise fake pouted and then violently poked his arm, “But you better call her. Don’t disappoint the girl.” He smirked and tucked the piece of paper back into the pocket of his leather jacket, fully intending to call her later.

A few floors below them, their co-worker, Anna, sat staring out the large window that looked out over the snowy parking lot. She was waiting to be called into the little phlebotomist’s station where they’d take her blood, which she certainly wanted to keep, but she had no choice. She crossed her ankles and slid down in her seat with her legs fully stretched. Tired, hungry, and depressed, Anna was not in the mood to see her blood crawl through a tube and into the little container. Her stomach growled loudly, but no one was there to look up in shock at how such a small stomach could make such a menacing noise.  
“Bystrom, Anna.” A thick Swedish accent called out. _Fuck, the gay guy again. I swear to God, if I get more bruising, I’m gonna go after that guy and El’s gonna have to arrest me._ She stood up and picked up her black tote bag that matched her black leather boots. “How are you doing?” You little arse. _You’re lucky I don’t own a gun._  
“I’m good. What about you?”  
“Fine, fine.” He shrugged, and she sucked in a deep breath as the blood draw began. Three small tubes of blood later and she was stumbling towards the elevator, her hand desperately searching in her purse for a granola bar or bag of chips. No luck. When she pressed the “down” button, the doors opened immediately to reveal El, Louise, and Magnus.  
“Anna, what are you doing here?” _Oh fuck this. Like you care._  
“Blood draw, I’m fine.” _Actually, I think I’m dying and I feel like I’m going to faint and throw up on your shoes. I hope they aren’t Gucci, Louise._  
“You sure? You don’t look good-“  
“You look a bit pale-“  
“I just haven’t eaten, I’m good.” She fished around her bag some more and finally found half a granola bar wedged in a pocket. The doors opened just as she finished chewing it and they said goodbye as Anna headed towards the vending machine. The only perks of being sick so often was the knowledge of where the vending machines, water fountains, and receptionists were located. Just as the granola bar fell out of the vending machine, the world started to slowly turn snowy. Picking up the snack, she slid down against the wall and when that didn’t work, she carefully laid down on her back with her legs vertical against the side of the vending machine.  
“God, I look stupid.” Her teeth grazed the wrapper and almost ate it too, but she didn’t really care, she’d swallow anything to make her feel better. Hell, she’d even accept heroin if it assured that she’d feel less crappy than she’d been feeling in the past week. A few minutes after downing the granola bar, she sat up and sighed, crumpling up the wrapper and then stuffing it in to her purse, not wanting to go in search of a trash can in her current state. She cautiously stood up, her eyesight growing snowy, but she shook it away and walked out of the hospital, bag in tow, to her dark red Volvo.  
It took less than twenty minutes to get back to the station, it took five more minutes to find her way back to the lab and sit down at her desk…where her computer had mysteriously gone missing. She swore to herself, and bent down to look for it beneath her desk. The sound of papers shuffling could be heard and she sat back up, her eyesight growing blurry for a minute before her eyes were able to focus on Brigid’s slim figure at the table across from her desk.  
“Where the hell is my computer?”  
“Lisbeth took it.”  
“I need it-“  
“Behöver det? Du sover bara hela tiden.*” She spit out, rolling her eyes.  
“Stäng det, mus hjärna.**” Anna rolled her eyes and stood up with a huff. “I’m gonna borrow Louise’s-“  
“The whole damn IT department took all of the computers, numskull. All of the firewalls are down, all of these computers need to be looked at and repaired, we’re doomed.”  
“Fine, fine then. I’m going to go visit the tea-“  
“Oh no you don’t, we still have all this shit to do-“

“Yeah, well without a computer and working system, anything we print out could be compromised. Didn’t your mother teach you anything?” Brigid went silent and glared at her, watching her pick up her bag and spin around on her heel. Marching towards the elevator, she smirked to herself, congratulating her brain on a job well done. Brigid had deserved that insult, considering how cold and ignorant she always was. She wasn’t all that bad when she was in a good mood, but she was a lot like Lisbeth, quiet and distant.  
The darkened hallway sent a shiver down Anna’s spine, but she felt a bit better when she stepped into the fully lit elevator. Her face was bathed in the warm light and the elevator felt more welcoming than basement where she typically spent her long work days. When the doors opened, she stepped out and took a deep breath of the coffee-tainted air, which she enjoyed better than the smell of rotting corpses and alcohol swabs. After a while, she got used to the smell of the blood and chemicals, but not of the rotting bodies. Each new body smelled different, and usually worse than the one before, it sucked for anyone working in the basement. The ventilation down there was poor, unlike the system upstairs which worked perfectly.  
“Hey, what are you doin’ out of the basement?” Louise joked, walking up behind her.  
“No computers, don’t want to risk usin’ the printers, so I decided to come up here and bother you guys.”  
“You two lab gremlins don’t bother us, don’t worry ‘bout it.” The two approached the conference room door where Wallander’s team sat around the large, dark oak table. They were all silent, each formulating their own theories and ideas. Lisbeth sat in the corner of the room in an ugly plastic chair with her laptop balanced on her knees. She had put her hair up in a bun, revealing another tattoo on her neck. Anna thought it looked like a rose of some sort, but wasn’t sure and didn’t want to pry.  
“Hey, Anna.” Lisbeth’s monotonous voice broke the silence and Anna replied with a simple “hello”. She knew the tattooed girl was smart, but she didn’t think that she could recognize that Anna was there just by her footsteps.  
“Any news on the when the system will be back up and running?”  
“Not yet, I’m working on it, just don’t use the computers until I fix all this and give the go-ahead.” They all nodded understandingly and then it became quiet. Anna found a chair and sat next to Magnus and Kurt, since she didn’t want to sit at the lonely end of the table where the Police Chief occasionally sat.  
“Has anything been compromised?”  
“I’m not sure, I’m actually working on that now, letting the arses in IT deal with the firewalls. I’ll let you know soon enough, just be patient.”  
“Are you sure we can’t use the computers just to type stuf-“  
“Don’t question her, Magnus.” If looks could kill, this one would have Magnus on a slab in autopsy. He shut his mouth and placed his worn down pencil on the file in front of him before running his fingers through his fluffy, curls. She glanced over and then focused her eyes back on her hands that were folded in her lap. _Look at those curls. I wonder what he does to get them so…so voluminous. I need to find out his secret._  
“So…what are the open cases we have on our hands?” Eleanor asked, letting out a loud sigh.  
“Open hit and run case involving the ballet dancer…mph, nothing else-“  
“The Pruit case,” Anna spoke up.  
“Yeah, but that one’s gone cold, not much evidence in that one.” El shook her head. _So stupid, Anna! Get yourself together!_  
“Alright then, what else.”  
“Nothing, yet.”  
“Sssooo, ID on the hit and run suspect?”  
“Mmhh, Chris Bjorn, nothing notable, but we can’t get a hold of him. Hasn’t been answering his phone.” Louise shrugged and leaned back in her chair, supporting her head with her hands.  
“So this is it then? This is all we’ve got?” Kurt shot daggers to anyone and everyone within his limited range of sight and Anna bent her head so she wouldn’t have any eye contact with him. She hated it when he got angry, though most of the time he was angry at Magnus for some reason or other, and that was a least once a week, if not more.  
“Yeah…we can’t do much without the computers.” He glared once more at Magnus, then stood up to stomp out of the room.  
“Wonder what’s up with him?”  
“Dunno.” Louise shrugged and stretched in her seat, spinning around a few times in her seat.  
“What should we do? I mean, we can’t really do anything, we rely so heavily on these computers… How are we going to get stuff done?”  
“It’ll be done soon.” Lisbeth said, clicking the laptop’s mouse a few times. “Then again, the IT arses aren’t as experienced as me.” They stayed quiet for a minute before she set the computer down in front of Eleanor, who was the closest to where she had been sitting.  
“What’s this? It’s just codes, I can’t read that!”  
“I know, but here are the files that have been looked at by a computer outside of the building, one that’s never been here before.” They all rushed to gather around the screen, trying to see how much had been revealed to these hackers.  
“Just a few, thank goodness.”  
“It’s the Pruit case.”  
“The double murder? Jacob Pruit? You sure? He’s supposedly not that experienced with computers. Who else would be doing the hacking?”  
“I don’t know, you tell me.”  
“Get the address.”  
“No problem, I’ll have to for you soon. Might wanna go tell your boss about this. He might want to know.”  
“Do you think this is a national security threat?”  
“No,” Lisbeth shook her head, her earrings clinking together, “Ystad as a sucky computer system, I’d say the least protected. Nothing that can’t be fixed, though.”  
“Thanks, Lis.” Eleanor nodded to her after writing down the document names, then scuttled out of the room to go find Kurt and the police chief.  
“Not much personality.” Lisbeth mumbled, closing the laptop up.  
“I think she has plenty of personality.” Anna crossed her arms over her chest and huffed a little, leaning on one leg more than the other.  
“Says the girl that never speaks.”  
“Look who’s talking.”  
“Yeah, well at least I have more personality than that dishrag.”  
“Oh shut it!” Louise rolled her eyes and yanked her black trench coat off the back of her chair, sending a wave of cool air through the room. Magnus opened his mouth to speak, but stopped when she pointed her finger at him. “That means you too, Magnus.” He stayed silent and they watched Louise make her way out of the room while stuffing her arms into her sleeves of the jacket.  
“Well, then, when can we get back to business?” The almost always silent, Carl, turned to Lisbeth who was stuffing her computer into her black, leather bag that was not in the least bit fancy.  
“In a few hours, twenty four at the most.”  
“Grreeaatt.” Magnus sighed and put his head in his hands, running his fingers through is curls. “Now what do we do?”


	4. Eyes on You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurt meets a FBI agent, and along with his team, the two track down a suspect in the computer hacking scandal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the long wait! This chapter is a bit longer, and there's a new character on the loose. Eventually the Winchester brothers (from Supernatural), and Olivia Benson and Doctor Huang (SVU) will all be making an appearance. If you have the time, please leave some feedback and if you really like it, then leave me some love. Thank you for reading. - Effie  
> NOTE: This chapter includes a brief mention of rape.

Eyes on You, Ch. 3

_“Oh, you capture my attention_

_Carefully listening,_

_Don't wanna miss a thing,_

_Keeping my eyes on you_

_Got me on my toes,”_

\- Toes, Lights

 

                It was only four in the afternoon and Wallander’s team was growing extremely restless. No one wanted to leave in case the computers were fixed, but they all wanted to get on with their personal lives outside of work.  Only a few of the team members sat around the large table. El and Louise had gone off somewhere else in the station, Nyberg was in the basement working on paperwork, and Kurt was taking a coffee break. The remaining members were trying to keep their minds idle, instead of letting them slip away into unconsciousness like Magnus had. He was drawing before, but put his head down for a moment and started snoring the next. Anna had also been doodling and was still awake, but this time working on some sort of form. The only ones doing police related work at that moment were Lisbeth and Brigid.

                Another hour went by and the members went to and fro, except for Magnus, who sat snoring with his head resting on his arms, his fluffy hair stuck up in all directions. Eventually, Lisbeth proclaimed that it was no use staying the rest of the night, and after rudely awaking Magnus, they all packed up. Lisbeth stayed with her computer, still sorting out more coding, and they all left, two at a time. Carl and Magnus, Anna and Brigid, Kurt and Nyberg, finally, El and Louise, who had the more interesting of the conversations.

                “So…are you doing anything tonight?” Louise asked, trying to catch up with her co-worker’s extremely fast pace.

                “No, why?” El’s auburn hair tickled her face as she approached her, making her nose wrinkle slightly.

                “Oh, uhm, I just wanted to know if you wanted to head out for a drink.” She stopped and faced the red head, frowning slightly at the proposition.

                “A drink?”

                “Yeh, a drink.” She thought about it for a moment, and then nodded, a small smile forming on her thin, red lips.

                “Sure, when and where?”

                “The pub down the street, how about in two hours? Late enough.”

                “Sure, I’ll be there.”

                “Great.”

                The two parted ways and exactly two hours later, they met up again at the pub down the street. It was probably not the best idea to have a pub right down the street from a police station with plenty of alcoholic officers, but no one had sued or complained about the pub’s location, so it stayed in place. Louise’s cousin, Freddie, was a bartender there and enjoyed it when Louise visited him for a drink. It wasn’t often that she went in there with company, but when she did, it was normally her boyfriend, or rather, now ex-boyfriend, Lars. When they broke up, Freddie didn’t intrude, knowing how snippy his older cousin could be when he pried into her life. He found it pretty funny how she hated it when people asked too many questions and prodded into her personal life, but she did that to other people, witnesses and co-workers alike.

                “Oi, Freddie. How are yeh?” She sat down at the bar in front of her red-headed relative with a cheeky grin on her face.

                “I’m good, what about you?”

                “Fine, I invited my friend to have a drink with meh, so don’t say anythin’ to embarrass me. ‘Kay?”

                “You two gettin’ serious?”

                “Oi! No, she’s a co-worker.” She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, feigning anger. He smirked and nodded sarcastically before she glared at him. “And just that.”

                “Sure, for now. You like her-“

                “She’s my friend! It would be very improper to fall in love with a co-worker.”

                “Hey, it worked fine for me, and the boss still hasn’t found out.” He winked at Krista, the waitress that had just passed by them.

                “Your new girlfriend?”

                “Yes.” He gave a definite nod and then motioned to the person approaching them. “Is this your friend? The just ‘friend’ friend?”

                “Yes.” She hissed, her eyes narrowing as her head slowly turned to see El standing next to the bar stool to the left of where she was sitting.

                “Am I interrupting something?”

                “No, no! Well, Freddie, meet Eleanor, my,” She gulped, “Friend slash co-worker.” She smiled and then her eyes widened as she realized that she didn’t know who Freddie was. “Oh and he’s my cousin, my lovely annoying cousin.”

                “It’s very nice to meet you.” El nodded to him, a small smile on her delicate face.

                “Sit down, and have a drink. What can I get ya?”

                “Oh, this is rather awkward; I’m not very familiar with alcoholic beverages.” She knew it was an odd thing to say, but she didn’t want to sound stupid when ordering something. It was better that she admit it now rather than later, once she embarrassed herself even more. She sat down and twisted her lips into an odd, embarrassed smile. _Wow, I’m so fuckin stupid. What the hell is wrong with me? Someone needs to slap some sense into me before I embarrass myself even more._

                “Well, my dear, I’ve got a menu right here.” He picked up one of the small menus underneath the counter and slid it across to her.

                “Thanks.”

                “Now, what would you like, Louise? A Burr Pom or perhaps a mint julep?”

                “I’ll stick with my screaming orgasm.” She winked and then looked back over at her friend who was looking through the menu, her face completely serious as if analyzing every option. A dark blush had started forming when Louise had decided on her drink choice and she immediately regretted taking up the offer on joining her at the pub. _I should’ve looked all this up first so I wouldn’t have made a complete röv * of myself._

                “I’ll have the mint julep, please.” El handed the menu back to him and smiled, looking down in her lap, still completely embarrassed.

                “So, have you ever been to a pub before today?” Louise chuckled, a mischievous grin upon her face.

                “No, actually. I mean once, but I didn’t drink anything, I just sat there watching my brother drink. Not very exciting, I’m afraid.”

                “So you’re a pub virgin, eh?”

                “I guess so.” Her blush darkened even more, and she felt her ears start to heat up too.

                “Oh, no need to blush! Nothin’ to be ashamed of, you adorable little thing.”

                “Little thing? I’ll have you know that I wield a gun.”

                “But my aim is better than yours.”

                “No it isn’t!”

                “Here are your drinks, madams.” Freddie slid two glasses in front of them and they both picked up their drinks.

                “Skål.”**

                “Skål.” Their glasses clinked together and they both took a sip, or rather, Louise downed the shot in one gulp and Eleanor took a dainty sip. Louise shook her head as the alcohol burned down her throat and then smiled.

                “Now I’ll just have to wait a bit before I get drunk, coutin’ on you to help me home.” She laughed and then turned back to Freddie. “I’ll have a Stella Artois.”

                “Comin’ right up.”

                “So, we haven’t really gotten to know each other even though we’ve been working together for, like, over six months. How come?”

                “I’m naturally quiet, nothing personal.” She shrugged and took another sip of her drink. “Tell me a bit about yourself, then I’ll reveal by deep dark secrets.”

                “Alright, well then…I’m Scottish, my family is pretty boring and I have a little sister, Emily, she’s sixteen. She lives with me because she apparently likes me more than my parents and sometimes she can be a big fuckin’ idiot.” She paused as Freddie brought her another drink and she took a sip before continuing her story. “I don’t really know why I became a police officer, I just kind of, liked the fact that I’d get a gun and chase bad guys. I’m pretty boring.” She took another sip and then pointed at Eleanor. “Alright, now you spill.”

                “Okay, well, I was born in Stockholm and lived there for a while, but I became a police officer and then moved down here. My parents are both dead and I have an older brother named Max, who loves taking naps and cuddling with anyone and everything.”

                “Is that all?” Louise frowned, and cocked her head to the side. “Surely there’s more.”

                “Yeah…there is.”

                “Well, do tell.”

                “I don’t like talking about it.”

                “How are we going to get to know each other if we don’t reveal our deepest secrets and trust each other with them? We’re supposed to be partners in crime, or rather, law since we’re uhm police officers and all. Now, spill.”

                “I…I was raped, when I was sixteen.”

                “Oh God, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-“

                “No, it’s fine, really. It’s all in the past, I’ve…I’ve gotten over it and it doesn’t bother me as much as it used to.”

                “Did they ever,” She gulped, “Find your rapist?”

                “No.” An awkward silence hung between them before Louise murmured out another ‘sorry’ before taking a swig of her beer. Suddenly, a phone rang somewhere and Eleanor let out a sigh.

                “Sorry, that’s my phone.” She pulled it out of her pocket and answered with a curt ‘hello’.

                “Yeah…really...alright, I guess, but Louise is a bit, uhm, drunk…no, it’s fine…we’ll be there soon.” While she listened, she eyed Louise who was taking a long gulp of her beer.

                “Who was that?”

                “Magnus says that they’ve traced the hacker, we have to go in now to be debriefed.”

                “Really, now?! Fuck this.” She let out an audible groan and put her head in her hands. “Fffuuuccckkkkk.”

                “We need to go, now. Come along, Lou. I’ll carry you out if I have to.”

                “Thank God you didn’t drink much-“

                “And if I did, we’d be screwed.”

                Ten minutes later, they arrived at the station in a slight mess. The alcohol was starting to affect Louise and she started singing some nursery rhyme as they walked down the street, forcing El to gently smack her arm to get her to stop. After a few smacks, she started singing a different song and eventually, when they entered the station, she shut up.  
                “Please make this quick, I need to get the delinquent home before she starts singing again.”

                “You two went out…together?” Brigid’s high-pitched voice made Louise giggle and she frowned at her. “What’s so funny?”               

                “You sound like,” She hiccupped and giggled again, “A fucking mouse.” A scowl formed on Brigid’s face and she crossed her arms over her chest.

                “Shut up, Lou.”

                “Hahahahaha, fuck you.”

                “Does anyone have any duct tape?”

                “I have plenty.” Magnus smirked as he spun around in his chair, he tucked his arms behind his head and interlaced them to support his head full of massive dirty blonde curls.

                "I'm nooott drunk!" Louise slurred as she slumped forward in her seat. "Nooooottt ddruuunkkk." Kurt and Lisbeth entered the room, and the drunk Scott earned a glare from him.

                "Jesus."

                "Well then."

                "Nooott drruunkk!"

                “If you’re wondering why you all are here so late, it’s because Lisbeth found the hacker.” Wallander said, trying to stifle his glare aimed at Louise.

                “Who?”

                “A guy named Linus Dahlman, no rap sheet but he was a suspect in a few burglaries so we have his DNA and info on file." Lisbeth shrugged and then slid the file across the table for everyone to see. Carl flipped it open to reveal a mug shot of a handsome, lanky man with a rather wide mouth and wild eyes.

                “Okay, great.”

                “We have someone watching his apartment, but we have a warrant for his apartment and his arrest, so we’ll be raiding the place tomorrow morning-“

                “What time?”

                “Eight o’clock, sharp-“

                “Meaning that Louise better not have a nasty hang over or she’ll be off the case. Everyone will be involved in the raid, even Brigid and Anna-“

                “Speaking of Anna, where is she?”

                “Has a cold, she went home for the night, I let her know a little while ago.” A silent chorus of nods circled the table, not exactly what he had expected. He thought they’d say ‘why the fuck couldn’t you call us’, but no one dared to speak out against him. He liked that, he enjoyed being in control and respected. “Alright go home.” Everyone started packing up and he started to exit the room, but stopped and turned around, “And Eleanor,”

                “Yes?”

                “Get Louise home.” She smirked and nodded.

                “Will do.”

                “NOOOT DRRUUUNKKK.”

                “Will you shut her up?!”Brigid squeaked unhappily, her lips pursing as if she had just eaten a sour lemon. Everyone ignored her as she glared at Louise who had started humming “Call Me Maybe”.

                “Okay, let’s get you home, you little troublemaker.”

*Ass or arse   ** Cheers

 

* * *

 

                Early the next morning, around seven o'clock, the officers all got the call to come in to help Kurt with the latest case. Eleanor, who had no hang-over at all, took the liberty to pick Louise up. She had driven her home last night in fear that she might do something reckless while drunk. She stayed at her apartment for an hour, just long enough to make sure that she was sound asleep. When Louise stumbled towards the car with her purse, she squinted her eyes, either glaring at El or trying to see in the unusually bright sunlight. Her orange hair was still straightened from last night, but it stuck all over her face. She had some dried drool around the corners of her lips and dark, purple bags hung under her eyes. As soon as she got into the car, they drove off down the road.

                Louise wasn't in the best of moods; it was evident by her glowering at the road in front of them. After a few minutes of silence, she sighed and said, "My sister went out partying last night, apparently she got drunk too."

                "So, how old is she, again?" El asked, glancing at her friend from the corner of her eye while she drove along the slippery Swedish roads.

                "Sixteen."

                "Sixteen? And she's out partying?!"

                "'spose it's different these days." She shrugged and closed her eyes. "God, this hangover is a killer."

                "Take a nap then, we'll be at the station soon, sleep while you can." El watched her open one eye to El, and then focused back on the road. A smile played Louise's lips as she sat motionless in the passenger seat, hoping to catch a few minutes of sleep. With her eyes closed, she opened her mouth to speak.

                "Why are we going to the station?"

                "Kurt said not everyone had been debriefed." She shrugged and eyed her as she started to fall asleep. Five minutes later, they arrived at the station. Eleanor parked the car, which jerked Louise awake. Her green eyes flew up and she furtively looked around.

                "Dammit, you scared me!"

                "Sorry." She shrugged and got out of the car. It took Louise a moment for her to process her surroundings and once she figured out where they were, she stepped out of the car, her clothes slightly ruffled and wrinkled. There were a few ice patches around the parking lot, which she was luckily able to avoid as she ambled up to the door of the station.

                When they got into the conference room, it seemed as if everyone had had a long night. Magnus was asleep with his head resting on her arms, his curly, blonde hair stuck up in all directions. Brigid was staring absentmindedly into her coffee and Anna had her head in her hands with her eyes closed. Carl was the only one awake and doing something productive. It was silent as they took their seats, and Lisbeth sat in the corner, barely making a noise as she tapped away at her keyboard while occasionally looking up to survey the room. Over the next few minutes, a few junior officers filed in, but there weren't that many. The room smelled strongly of coffee, due to the fact that most of the officers and detective had a cup in their hand or on the table in front of them. Eventually, Kurt came in with his coffee and a newspaper, which he set down at his seat before clearing his throat, as if ready to announce something.

                "We'll be doing a raid on Linus Dahlman's apartment this morning, we have a search warrant and an arrest warrant.” He waved the two pieces of blue paper in his hands, then continued, “He's wanted for hacking into a government computer a-"

                "And possible terrorist ties." An American accent echoed from behind him and he whirled around.

                "Who are you?"

                "FBI Special Agent Debra Witherspoon-" Everyone's eyes widened as they watched the scene that started to unfold before them.

                "Wait, w-why is the FBI involved?"

                "Suspected anti-American terrorist ties and he's had contact with members of Al-Qaeda." The middle-aged woman said, her hands resting on her hips. She was around five-seven with long, dark brown hair that reminded Kurt of sloppy, wet mud during the summer, other than that, she was very pretty.

                "Why weren't we informed of this?"

                "Well you just have, besides, I only just got here. The FBI doesn't like sending casual emails about Al-Qaeda; we're not like you Swedes." She whispered the last bit, hoping to only insult him.

                "What's that supposed to mean?"

                "It means whatever you want it to mean."

                "Excuse me?"

                "I'm leading the raid."

                "W-w-w-wait? Why, you can't just barge in here-"

                "FBI agents have jurisdiction all over the world, oh, and we have better standing with the suspects. They tend to comply quicker when the FBI gets involved and is in the lead."

                "She has a point, Kurt." Magnus shrugged, breaking the deadly gaze between Debra and Kurt.

                "Thank you for the encouragement, Magnus." His sarcasm made him roll his eyes and eventually, Magnus was the first to make a move. First, he made sure to text everyone the directions and coordinates to Dahlman’s house, then he quickly grabbed his coat and coffee. Carl slipped on his thick wool pea coat and followed him out the door without looking back.

                "Come on, let's go Louise."

                "Fine." She stood up, wobbling from side to side, and the two departed the room. The rest of the officers and team members quickly followed their example, leaving Debra and Kurt still having a malicious staring contest that no one else wanted to get involved in.

                "I don't appreciate you just barging into the station and taking control of my team. If you hadn't already noticed, I'm the leader and they do as I say. I don't take orders from-"

                "Women?"

                "FBI agents that rudely interrupt me."

                "I had to make my position known somehow-"

                "What position-"

                "The position that I'm the dominant one in this relationship-"

                "Pardon?"

                "Come on, let's get going. I don't want to end up last at the scene-"

                "Well, I'm driving-"

                "So you want us to end up dead before we get there-"

                "We're not going to end up dead on the bloody road, I'm perfectly capable at driving at high speeds without killing people. Besides, you don't know how to drive on the ice-"

                "It snows in DC, I think I should know-"

                "Even I bloody well know that it never snows in that friggin' place-"

                "Shut up-"

                "I'm driving, I have the keys, and you’re not stopping me."

                The only pair to have a civil conversation was Carl and Magnus, who both exchanged details of what they had done last night. Carl had stayed up late reading _1984_ by George Orwell while Magnus had gone to bed at ten after having a cup of hot chocolate. In the forensics truck, Anna, Nyberg, and Brigid stayed silent. The only time anyone uttered a word was when Nyberg cursed at an American wearing an _I love New York_ t-shirt who was j-walking in front of them. Louise and Eleanor shared the same utterly boring experience; Louise slept for the whole twenty five minutes that drove along on the roads. Kurt and Debra exchanged a few glares and an inaudible curse now and then, but they remained quiet throughout the ride.

                When they all gathered around in a group outside of Linus Dahlman's apartment, the only people who weren't either in a foul mood or half asleep, were Carl, Magnus, and Eleanor. They could sense that it was going to be a long, long day. Though one thing that took the shortest amount of time was Magnus breaking down Dahlman's door. He was very skilled in that department, and Kurt suspected that he practiced on anything he could get his hands on. One thing that no one in the room could ever be prepared for was the sight in front of them.

                Blood spatters lined the back wall, a body lay face down on the wood with a puddle of dark scarlet liquid beneath them. Two lamps had been knocked over, the glass coffee table had been shattered, and the body that was splayed out on the wooden floor was one hundred percent likely to not be Dahlman. The forensics team quickly got to work while the detectives, excluding Louise who sat sleeping in the car, went around and questioned the neighbors.

                "Was there anything suspicious, at all, about Mr. Dahlman?" Debra asked, tapping her pencil against her notepad.

                "No, that that I could tell. I'ma bit 'ard of hearin', but his visitors looked friendly enough."

                "Was there anyone that you saw here more often in the past few weeks?'

                "Eeehh, there was this one fella', tall with dark black hair and earrins'. He came 'round here a lot, didn't speak much. That's 'bout all I can tell ya." The older woman shrugged and adjusted her purple blouse.

                "Alright, thank you. I'll give you my card in case you think of anything that might help us." She handed the woman her card, the FBI logo clearly marked on both sides.

                "Yer American?" Debra nodded, smiling. "We don't get many of you here. Good to see that people still take 'in interest 'en Ystad." _If only you knew why I was really here._

                "Thank you very much for helping us, please don't hesitate to contact me if you think of anything else." The woman nodded and smiled before closing the door, leaving Debra with an empty notepad with no answers. Suddenly, Kurt bounded up the stairs, almost running into Nyberg.

                "Where's the team?" Nyberg shook his head, not knowing where the team members had gone.

                "They've spread out to question the residents, wh-"

                "There's a chase involving Dahlman's car, we need to get there, now."

                "Oh, okay, I'll find them." She hastily went around, collecting the detectives and sending them to their cars. The first to drive off with the directions to the chase were Eleanor and Louise, who was sound asleep until the tires screeched as they speeded off. Carl and Magnus quickly followed them, with Kurt and Debra following behind.

                "Bloody ‘ell, you took forever, we're supposed to be in the front, and I am the team leader for God's sake!"

                "Oh, well, I'm sssoo sorry that I was following your orders." Sarcasm dripped from her voice as she buckled her seat belt, she felt him glaring at her as he pressed on the gas pedal, causing them to lurch forward. "Watch it there speedy."

                In Eleanor and Louise's car up at the front of the pack, speeding towards the coast where the chase was taking place, Louise angrily stared out the window. The sirens had awoken her from her short nap, and she was getting crankier by the minute.

                "Come on, don't look like that."

                "Like what?"

                "All pouty."

                "I'm not pouty."

                "Yes you are." Eleanor let out a little chuckle and let her eyes dart down to check the speedometer. It read 96 kilometers per hour. After ten minutes of speeding down the back streets of Ystad, they had finally caught up with the other officers who were chasing down Dahlman's car. Despite them being a bit late to the party, they had managed to get in front of the pack using a back road that was rarely used. When she had nightmares or just couldn't sleep, El would drive around Ystad, it helped calm her down.

                "Ssssoo, have you read any good books lately?"

                "I finished _Pride and Prejudice_ the other day, it was okay."

                "I love that book, a bit of a hard read, but still good." Louise shrugged. A few more minutes passed as they drove down the winding road, following at a safe distance behind Dahlman's Range Rover. "Look...about last night...-"

                "What about it?"

                "Can you not tell anyone about what I said?"

                "About you being raped?" El cringed and nodded, her eyes still focused on the road. "Why would I tell anyone? I have nothing to gain and I wouldn't want you to be the center of the station gossip."

                "Than-" Her sentence was cut off by the car hitting a patch of ice and skidding across the road. The two let out screams as the slid sideways in the center of the two lane road. "Holy shit." They came to a stop, but she quickly straightened the car out on the road and they each regained their composure. The other cars were farther behind them, making it safer for all of them in case the car decided to skid along the ice again.

                "Thank God we're in this car." A light smile formed on Louise's face as she referred to the sturdy, well-built Volvo station wagon, the standard issue car for the detectives in Sweden.

                “Do you even know where this road leads to?”

                “I think towards the older docks.” A minute or so passed before they reached the docks, just as Eleanor had predicted. The Range Rover skidded to a stop beside one of the small piers and the driver jumped out of the car.

                “I’ll go, you radio the others.” Eleanor hopped out, gun drawn. She could feel her pulse thrumming in her neck as she approached the man.

                “Police, put your hands up.” He didn’t move. “Polis, händerna upp.” She repeated in Swedish, he turned around, his eyes wild and he watched Louise get out of the car.

                “I get to cuff him.” El rolled her eyes and watched him carefully as he raised his hands. Louise approached cautiously, her hand resting on her gun holster. Tugging the handcuffs free from her uniform’s pockets, she reached out to cuff him, but instead was greeted with a loud boom. Glass shards flew through air and flames ripped through Dahlman’s car. The three had all collapsed from the shock wave, but only El was able to get up. Blood dripped down her cheek, it was just a minor cut, her left shoulder (the one she had fallen on) throbbed with pain. She was more worried about Louise than herself, so she stumbled towards her, slightly dazed and confused. Smoke billowed out from the car and another small explosion followed, but her hands found Louise’s motionless body. Her lungs burned from the smoke and gas fumes, she took short, shallow breaths as she watched her friend lying on the icy ground.

                “Dammit.” She took her wrist in her own small hand and managed to find a racing pulse, but she still didn’t move. Sirens wailed in the background and Eleanor mustered all of her strength to pick her partner up and carry her to their squad car. Gently laying her down beside the car, she let out a loud curse, wondering why she hadn’t been suspicious of Dahlman earlier. Why else would he have those wild eyes? Someone wanted him to die, and they most likely succeeded. Louise was alive only because of the standard issue bullet proof vest. Her vision blurred slightly as she watched her friend open her eyes slightly, blood trickled down the side of her head and shrapnel had pierced her delicate skin on her collar bone. There were a few more cuts and gashes on her arms and hands, but they were fairly minor.

                “What the fuck?”

                “Ut ur vägen!*” Two paramedics shoved El aside and started to tend to Louise who was cringing in pain. Her hands reached for the hood of the car, and pulled herself up. It was hard keeping her balance as her whole body shook, her hands twitched and her eyes were wide and filled with tears. She couldn’t tell if the tears were from the smoke and flames or just from witnessing her friend almost being blown into the sky. She was lucky that she had been fairly far away from the car, Dahlman was much closer and had probably been killed. El felt a protective hand on her shoulder and turned to find Carl trying to tug her away from the car. Despite his warm, comforting hand on her shoulder, her breathing was still shallow and her eyes were still wide, trying to take in the scene around her. Flames were still engulfing Dahlman’s car, but they had died down considerably.

                “Hey, come on. They’re taking Louise to the hospital.” It took her a moment to realize that they had wheeled her partner away, she hadn’t even noticed. “I’ll drive you.”

                “Wh-what happened?”

                “I don’t know, we only just got here.” She turned around to face him and he gently rubbed her right shoulder, making her wince. “We need to get you to the hospital, I think you’re in shock and you should probably get checked out.”

                “No, I n-“

                “You need a doctor, let’s get going.”

                “But-”

                “Come on.” Eleanor couldn’t think straight as she stumbled towards a car….or an ambulance? She couldn’t tell which, her vision blurred again and her hands tried to find something to hold onto. It took her a moment to realize why she felt so shocked, it was the first time she had seen someone die. Her detective days just consisted of previously deceased corpses, she had never seen something like that happen before, at least, not right in front of her. It was new and unfamiliar, and her stomach twisted, the feeling was wholly unwelcome.

                She ended up passing out in the car, and El couldn’t remember anything other than the explosion and helping Louise. She found herself on a bed in the emergency room and she silently thanked the nurses for not replacing her dirtied clothes with a hospital gown. She didn’t welcome anyone trying to take of her clothes, even if they had kind intentions. Only a curtain separated her from the other patients and she noticed that a glimmer of red hair peeking out on the right side. As she sat up, a nurse came rushing over.

                “I’m Jackie, I’m your nurse today. It’s good to see that you’re up, but try not to move much.” The petite black woman had a gently smile and a young face with a few wrinkles around her eyes.

                “Thanks, uhm, is that Louise in there or uh over there.” She motioned to the right and watched Jackie frown, but then nod.

                “Is she your friend?”

                “Yeah, uhm, partner at the police station.” El nodded and swung her legs over the side of the rock hard bed. Her nurse gave her a disapproving look but helped her up.

                “Where would you like to go?”

                “I just want to visit my friend.” She shrugged with her one good arm and watched her take the IV off of the wall hook and place it on a rolling hook so that she could move about freely. Eleanor noticed that her right hand had a large needle stuck in the main vein and she grimaced. It hurt and was extremely uncomfortable, but she didn’t want to complain. As she pushed herself off the bed, her left arm started throbbing. Her shoulder was wrapped up in gauze.

                “Damn, what happened to my shoulder?”

                “Your shoulder was separated, nothing dangerous. You might have to wear a sling for a little bit, it just depends on how your shoulder feels.” She hobbled around the curtain, keeping her left arm by her side, and watched Louise for a moment before sitting in the chair next to her bed.

                “Hey, Louise.” Her eyes twitched open and a small smiled formed on her weary face. There were multiple small cuts on her cheek and one below her lip, a large gash with stiches was located on the left side of her forehead. There were a few more cuts on her arms where shrapnel must have sliced through her shirt and a few more cuts littered her collar bone. It looked painful, it took a lot not to cringe at her overall condition.

                “Hey, why are you here, I didn’t think you got hurt?” She croaked out.

                “I guess I-I was in shock, I can’t remember much and the nurse said my shoulder was separated or something. How are you doing?”

                “I feel like hell-”

                “Sorry, sorry, that was a really stupid question.”

                “I’ll say.”

                “Is there any serious damage?”

                “A dislocated shoulder, a few stitches, and a broken pinkie of all bones.” She held up her left pinkie finger that had been placed in a metal splint.

                “So, you’ll be okay. Right?”

                “I think so.” Louise nodded and closed her eyes. “They gave me pain meds, I feel like I’m in wonderland. Oh bother.”

                “That’s Winnie the Pooh.”

                “We’re all mad here.” The two chuckled and then Louise waved her away. “Go get some sleep, then go catch the bomb-making bastard. I’m gonna be staying here overnight.”

                “How do you know so much? You were uncon-“

                “You were out for two hours, El. You were sleeping or whatever. It didn’t take long for the pain to wake me up, man.” Eleanor stood up and then gently smiled down at her friend.

                “I’m glad you’re okay.”

                “Me too.”

*Get out of the way!

 

* * *

 

                They released her a few hours later, and she quickly secured her gun holster onto her waist, then ran her fingers through her hair so she didn’t look all that pathetic. As soon as she got herself presentable, the nurse put her arm in a sling and gave her a prescription for pain medication. She was about to put the piece of paper in her purse, but it wasn’t there, she had left it in the squad car and no one had retrieved it for her. Another thing missing was her gun, her heart beat a little faster but she calmed herself down, figuring that Carl had taken it from her. Eleanor politely asked for a taxi, which arrived almost immediately, and it drove her to the station which was less than a few minutes away. She could’ve walked, but she didn’t want to risk straining herself and ending up back in the hospital.

                When she arrived, she saw that someone had parked their squad car in the lot, she quietly thanked whoever did that. She suspected that it had been Carl, who had been trying to get her attention. He was handsome, she had to admit, but he was a coworker. Workplace romances never worked, she didn’t know that from experience, but she figured that the only outcome possible wouldn’t be good. It was a simple fact that everyone knew, workplace romances never ended well, especially when it involves large companies and large sums of money.

                “There she is-“

                “What are you doing out of the hospital?” Brigid asked, actual concern filling her high pitched voice.

                “They let me go.” She shrugged with her one good shoulder as she entered the room, then took a seat next to Carl. “I just have a separated shoulder, they put it in a sling, that’s the only thing they can do.”

                “Oh, hey, I go your bag for you.” Anna sat to the right of Magnus, and scooted her chair back some to reach underneath it. She pulled out El’s small black leather tote and then slid it across the table to her. “Chief Delling had your gun.”

                “Yeah, I thought so. I panicked when it wasn’t in my holster.”

                “Carl made sure that you didn’t have it.”

                “Thanks for getting my purse.”

                “No problem.” Anna shrugged and turned her attention back on her forensics report.

                “So, uhm…any leads?”

                “Well, Dahlman is dead, that guy in his apartment is dead, we have nothing.” Magnus let out a huff and twirled some of his curls around his fingers. Anna had the urge to play with his hair, but kept her hands to herself, not wanting to be charged with sexual harassment or assault.

                “Anything on the bomb?”

                “Nothing rather remarkable about it.” Nyberg tapped the eraser of his pencil on the table and looked down, it was obvious that he was bored out of his mind.

                “What about Kurt and the FBI agent? Where did they go?”

                “The two had a row earlier, they’re probably in Delling’s office getting lectured like school children.”

                “Okay, so no leads whatsoever other than the fact that someone is not happy with this Dahlman guy and that other dead guy.”

                “Basically.” Magnus shrugged and let out a little chuckle. “Sorry that you had to arrive to such little good news.”

                “Have you checked the phone records?”

                “He called burn phones and pay phones each time, no way to trace any of them.” Anna shook her head wearily as she wrote a few notes down.

                “I think we’re lucky to have the FBI involved, we need all the help we can get on this case. These people are too serious to just be planning something Ystad.”

                “True, but I don’t like people poking into Ystad police business.” Brigid turned her nose up and walked out of the door, a slight breeze ruffled Anna’s files and one slid over towards Magnus. She let out a rather unpleasant, wet cough and let out a small “sorry”. His fingers found the edge of the paper that slid towards him and he couldn’t help but scan over it. Anna didn’t seem to notice, so he continued reading it. It was a doctor’s office form for new patients. Under health conditions, there were numerous conditions listed, but they meant nothing to him. He had no clue what they meant, and she had finally noticed that Magnus was reading her forms.

                “That’s confidential police business, Magnus.” She teased and gently tugged the paper out of his hand. He looked down, a bit embarrassed he had been caught.

                “Sorry, just curious-“

                “Curiosity killed the cat, it can kill the curious Magnus too."

                “It’ll probably kill all of us eventually.”


End file.
